^ — „^  ^ 

r~ 

*>       ..l, 

j . 

IHIIillS 

V.,: 

■  ;•: 

lislPltss 

H    B  O  S  T  O  N  I A    $7 
&*       CON  D 1 TA  ^D  •     J?A 


A  Q  (1 


ON 


Rev.D.O'CALLAGHAN 


r73-  *.&. 


eD 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2011  with  funding  from 

Boston  Library  Consortium  Member  Libraries 


http://www.archive.org/details/orationdelivered1898ocal 


ORATION 


DELIVERED   BEFORE  THE 


City  Council  and  Citizens 
of  Boston 


ON  THE 


ONE  HUNDRED  AND  TWENTY-SECOND 
ANNIVERSARY  OF  THE  DECLARATION  OF  INDEPENDENCE 


MONDAY,  JULY  4,  1898 

BY 

Rev.    D.    O'CALLAGHAN 


BOSTON 

PRINTED  BY  ORDER  OF  THE  CITY  COUNCIL 

1898 


Press  of  Municipal  Printing  Office, 
Boston,  Massachusetts. 


Citg      0f      §0St01t. 


In  Common  Council,  July  7,  1898. 
Resolved,  That  the  thanks  of  the  City  Council  be 
hereby  tendered  to  the  Rev.  Denis  O'Callaghan  for  the 
eloquent  and  interesting  oration  delivered  by  him  on  the 
Fourth  of  July,  in  commemoration  of  the  One  Hundred 
and  Twenty-second  Anniversary  of  the  Declaration  of 
Independence,  and  that  he  be  requested  to  furnish  a 
copy  of  the  said  address  and    his  portrait    for  publication. 

Adopted   unanimously   by  a  rising   vote.     Sent   up   for 
concurrence. 

Timothy  L.  Connolly. 

President. 

In  Board  of  Aldermen,  July  11,  1898. 
Concurred  unanimously  by  a  rising  vote. 

Joseph  A.  Coney, 

Chairman. 

Approved  July  13,  1898. 

JOSIAH   QUINCY, 

Mayor. 

A  true  copy. 

Attest : 

John  M.  Galvin, 

City  Clerk. 


ORATION. 


Mr.  Mayor  and  Citizens  of  Boston: 

I  cannot  know,  and  hence  I  may  not  tell,  by  what 
undeserved  good  fortune,  by  what  favoring  circum- 
stances, by  what  too  kind  overestimate,  the  honor 
of  having  the  place  of  the  principal  speaker  has 
come  to  me.  This  day,  which  marks  the  birth  of  a 
nation  amid  unprecedented  circumstances,  this  hall, 
the  very  cradle  of  American  liberty,  which  heard 
the  earnest  resolves  of  the  patriot  fathers  them- 
selves; this  hall,  whose  walls  have  rung  again  and 
again  with  the  finished  and  impassioned  utterances  of 
the  nation's  most  gifted  sons,  have  reechoed  with  the 
plaudits  of  thrilled  and  entranced  audiences;  this 
environment,  the  ancient  and  goodly  city  of  Boston, 
whose  breath  kindled  the  flame  of  American  liberty, 
whose  daring  act,  provoked,  made  necessary  and 
resulted  in  the  Declaration  of  Independence;  this 
present  distinguished  assembly;  the  circumstances  of 
the  present  hour,  when  we  have  victories  abroad 
and  peace  and  union  at  home,  might  well  cause  the 
most  eloquent  tongue  to  stammer.  How,  then,  shall 
they    not    make    this    attempt   of   mine   appear   not 


6  Oration. 

only  inadequate,  but  overambitious  and  hazardous? 
Were  it  not  then  that  I  recognize  in  this  compli- 
mentary selection  something  far  and  away  beyond 
personal  merit,  or  long  residence,  or  cherished 
friendship;  did  I  not  see  in  it  a  compliment  to 
the  sacred  calling  of  which  I  am  a  member,  a 
tribute  to  a  large  and  well-deserving  portion  of 
this  Commonwealth,  whose  sons  have  proved  oft 
and  again  their  loyal  citizenship,  e'en  in  the  deadly 
breach,  who  now  stand  ready  upon  the  tented  field, 
or  perchance,  having  sped  across  the  main,  are  at 
this  moment  in  the  deadly  fight,  I  could  have  never 
brought  myself  to  acccept. 

The  circling  year,  then,  has  once  more  brought 
us  to  this  day  of  sacred  and  glorious  memories.  It 
marks  the  history,  the  trials  of  colonial  life,  and 
the  very  beginning  of  these  United  States. 

It  tells  us  again  how  the  providential  hand  of 
God  led  our  fathers  from  the  land  of  bondage,  from 
the  narrowness,  the  contentions,  the  prohibitions, 
civil  and  ecclesiastical,  of  the  old  world.  How,  hav- 
ing braved  unknown  seas  and  encountered  every 
danger  of  unpropitious  skies,  hostile  earth  and  savage 
foe,  they  found  here  a  foothold  and  made  a  home. 
How  they,  a  feeble  folk,  were  made  brave,  alert  and 
strong    as    steel  by  recurring   danger;   how   isolation 


Fourth   of  July,    1898.  7 

had  taught  them  self-reliance;  and  the  need  of  pro- 
tection and  union  had  developed  in  them  the 
capacity  for  self-government ;  how  the  sights  and 
sounds  of  nature  brought  them  closer  to  God  and 
rilled  them  with  a  sense  of  right,  of  justice,  of 
dependence  on  Him ;  how  distance  from  home  had 
freed  them  from  the  artificial  distinctions  of  caste 
and  rank,  and  common  toil  had  dissolved  the 
enchantment  that  hangs  about  those  who  are  clad 
in  soft  raiment  and  dwell  in  the  houses  of 
kings.  When  their  claims  were  derided,  when,  as 
the  declaration  states,  their  appeals  were  spurned, 
their  petitions  unanswered,  their  liberty  not  only 
threatened  but  invaded;  when  force,  the  last 
argument  of  tyranny,  was  brought  to  coerce  them, 
then  finally  they  resisted;  they  appealed  to  God,  to 
the  righteous  judgment  of  the  lovers  of  justice 
throughout  the  world,  and  to  their  own  stout 
arms. 

The  declaration,  which  this  day  saw  first  pro- 
claimed, will  be  forever  memorable,  not  simply  for 
the  determination  and  the  deeds  to  which  it 
bears  witness ;  not  so  much  for  the  fidelity  and  sac- 
rifices which  carried  out  its  statements  into  glorious 
actions;  not  for  the  results  we  enjoy,  but  mainly 
because    it    was    the    handwriting    on    the    wall    to 


8  Oration. 

tyranny  everywhere;  because  it  was  and  is  the 
Magna  Charta,  not  of  one  nation,  but  of  humanity, 
and,  shall  I  say,  of  universal  and  triumphant  democ- 
racy. Surely  there  is  a  providence  which  shapes  man's 
ends.  Those  men  spoke  more  wisely  than  they  knew; 
they  wrote  inspired  words,  not  simply  the  text  of 
the  immortal  document  that  bears  their  names,  but 
with  a  stylus  whose  teachings  will  be  found  indel- 
ibly impressed  upon  the  human  conscience  henceforth 
and  forever;  they  built  more  strongly,  more  broadly 
than  they  thought  or  wisted  of,  for  they  set  up  as 
a  living  reality  what  had  been  a  dream, — a  hope 
of  liberty-loving  souls  from  the  beginning,  —  "A 
government  of  the  people,  for  the  people  and  by 
the  people."  And  so  we  glorify  these  men,  great 
in  their  generation,  whose  works  remain,  whose  testa- 
ment is  confirmed.  Now  this  day,  fellow-citizens, 
has  not  only  its  great  memories,  but  its  great 
lessons.  It  exalts  and  enforces  with  transcendent 
power  the  virtue  of  patriotism.  It  brings  home  to 
us  as  no  other  day  can  the  ever-needful  duty  of 
love  of  country. 

Patriotism  is  not  a  narrow,  selfish  glorification  of 
one's  country  which,  dwelling  too  fondly  on  the  past 
and  present,  finds  expression  in  vapid  and  boastful 
words.      It  is  not   an   unreasoning   sentiment  which, 


Fourth   of   July,   1898.  9 

ignoring  right,  justice,  the  virtues  and  qualities  of 
others,  natters  itself  as  possessing  supreme  excellence ; 
which  is  ready  to  condone  all  faults,  to  extol  all 
deeds  whether  of  blood  or  finesse,  provided  they 
redound  to  the  nation's  strength  and  fame.  This  is 
the  perversion,  the  excess  of  patriotism. 

True  patriotism  has  its  sources  in  things  far 
nobler,  it  has  its  foundation  in  things  which  are 
both  natural  and  divine.  Nations  have  their  provi- 
dential limits,  their  characteristics,  their  definite  role. 
They  work  out  under  the  Divine  Ruler  the  destiny 
he  has  set  before  them  and  play  their  part  in  an 
ever-shifting  yet  mighty  drama  which  tends  to 
mankind's  betterment  and  God's  glory.  As  the 
nation  receives  from  God  authority  for  its  work 
and  for  its  needs,  so  does  it  speak  to  us  with  a 
divine  voice  which  in  its  own  realm  merits  and 
claims  our  obedience. 

As  it  protects  our  higher  and  nobler  interests, 
our  homes,  our  altars,  our  firesides  and  our  property, 
as  we  partake  of  its  strength,  share  in  its  peace 
and  its  civilization,  so  upon  the  high  and  solid  basis 
of  justice  and  gratitude,  we  owe  it  affection  and 
allegiance.  The  supreme  and  determining  rule  is, 
"  Render  to  Caesar  the  things  that  are  Caesar's,  and  to 
God  the  things   that   are  God's."     "  For  after  God  is 


10  Oration. 

country,  and  after  religion  comes  patriotism."  This 
virtue  and  duty,  then,  of  patriotism,  is  a  just,  deep 
and  holy  attachment  to  the  land  of  one's  birth  or 
adoption,  which  combines  reverence  and  gratitude  for 
the  past,  with  the  discharge  of  duty  in  the  present. 
It  is  a  sentiment  which  makes  a  man  not  only 
love  but  strive  to  be  worthy  of  his  country;  makes 
him  willing  and  glad  to  uplift  himself  and  his 
fellows  to  ideal  citizenship ;  makes  him  ready  to  do 
and  dare  all  things  for  his  country's  preservation, 
for  its  honor,  renown  and  glory.  Patriotism,  more- 
over, combines  many  other  things  which  are  personal 
and  tender.  We  are  not  isolated  beings.  We  tend 
to  grow  towards  all  things  since  we  tend  to  truth, 
to  liberty  —  to  God.  The  very  local  surroundings 
of  life  become  part  of  ourselves;  the  very  natural 
features  of  our  country  come  to  be  as  kin  to  our- 
selves ;  the  high  mountains,  the  noble  rivers,  the 
smiling  valley,  the  grandeur  and  might  of  ocean, 
here  fretted  and  curbed  by  our  rocky  coast,  all  these 
things  are  instinct  with  feeling  and  make  our  love. 
The  impressions  and  associations  of  home,  a  mother's 
love,  a  father's  tender  care,  the  playground  of  our 
childhood,  the  hallowed  and  historic  spots,  a  Lexing- 
ton, a  Concord,  a  Bunker  Hill,  the  Heights  of  Dor- 
chester, the  very  pavements  beneath  our  feet,  where 


Fourth   of    July,   1898.  11 

heroes  fought  and  bled,  —  these  are  nourishing  forces 
of  patriotism.  And  where  are  they  scattered  around 
with  a  more  lavish  hand  than  here  in  Boston? 
What  is  wanting  to  us?  As  regards  history,  these 
United  States  are  providential  in  origin,  in  history 
and  in  preservation.  In  us  the  cause  of  human 
liberty  and  progress  would  seem  to  be  bound  up. 

What  other  nation  has  a  record  and  a  growth 
so  wonderful,  a  domain  so  extended,  so  varied,  so 
fertile,  a  mission  so  glorious?  What  other  nation 
so  ennobles  men  by  her  conception  of  what  they 
are,  and,  in  turn,  what  other  nation  so  entirely  and 
fondly  entrusts  herself  and  her  fortunes  to  the  love, 
to  the  intelligence  and  patriotism  of  her  children?" 
It  is  on  this  fundamental  appreciation  of  what  our 
country  is,  what  she  stands  for,  that  our  patriotism 
must  rest ;  and  conversely  each  and  all  of  us  is  charged 
with  the  duty  of  maintaining  those  principles  of  liberty 
and  right;  for  their  perpetuation,  their  preservation, 
depend  upon  our  honor,  our  intelligence  and  zealous 
regard  for  the  public  good.  What  our  fathers  hoped 
for  we  see;  what  they  toiled  for  we  enjoy;  and  one 
hundred  and  twenty  years  of  national,  ever-expand- 
ing life  have  but  more  fully  demonstrated  that  the 
republic  is  the  hope  of  mankind,  the  beacon  light, 
high-uplifted,  to  lead  humanity  onward  to  liberty  and 


12  Oration. 

self-government,  to  peace  and  prosperity,  to  universal 
brotherhood. 

The  considerations  thus  far  set  forth  on  the  ex- 
ample, the  action,  the  virtue,  which  inspired  the 
Declaration  of  Independence,  weighty  and  inter- 
esting as  they  are,  must,  however,  be  judged  and 
weighed,  and  they  will  be  found  to  be  results  from 
some  broad  and  higher  motive.  And  so,  in  truth, 
they  are.  As  we  read  the  annals  of  those  times  and  of 
those  men,  as  we  scan  the  signatures  appended  to  that 
unique  document ;  those  names  which  have  made  his- 
tory— and  such  history! — those  men  who  resisted  unto 
death  that  they,  their  fellow-citizens,  and  if  so  be,  all 
men,  might  be  guaranteed  "  life,  liberty  and  the  pursuit 
of  happiness,"  we  are  constrained  to  ask  ourselves 
what  was  the  sanction  of  their  act  ?  What  was  the 
source  of  their  hope  and  of  their  strength,  what 
the  inspiration  that  moved  them  to  do  and  dare  all, 
in  creating,  in  upholding,  in  loving  "  through  good 
report,  and  evil  report,  unto  stripes  and  death,"  their 
country?  Can  we  mistake  it?  Is  it  far  to  seek? 
No!  it  confronts  us  in  unmistakable  characters  of 
living  light;  it  is  promulgated  with  no  uncertain 
sound,  in  the  very  text  —  which  thus  runs  —  "For 
the  support  of  this  declaration  with  a  firm  reliance 
on   the   protection  of  Divine  Providence  we  mutually 


Fourth  of  July,  1898.  13 

pledge  to  each  other  our  lives,  our  fortunes,  and  our 
sacred  honor."  It  was  religion.  It  was  the  human 
conscience  knowing  its  rights  and  its  sincerity ;  yet 
aware  at  the  same  time  of  its  own  innate  weakness, 
crying  to,  and  resting  upon,  heavenly  aid,  and  now 
appealing  from  man  to  God.  Beside  and  above  the 
new-born  genius  of  the  republic  which  that  day 
sprang  forth  to  life,  bathed  in  the  sunshine,  there 
stood,  with  hands  outstretched  in  benediction,  the  ven- 
erable form  and  spirit  of  religion — "that  light  which 
enlighteneth  every  man  coming  into  the  world" — 
that  religion  first  proclaimed  amid  the  thunders  of 
Sinai,  that  flamed  later  on  in  the  inspired  words  of 
the  prophets,  that  burned  with  serenest  glow  as  it 
lit  up  and  thrilled  men's  souls,  as  it  fell  like  dew 
upon  the  parched  earth  from  the  gentle,  holy  lips 
of  the  Saviour. 

Following  the  authority  of  every  philosopher  and 
statesman  who  has  worthily  discussed  human  gov- 
ernment, they  held  there  could  be  "  no  stable  society 
without  justice,  no  justice  without  morality,  no 
morality  without  religion,  and  no  religion  without 
God."  They  did  not  advocate,  nor  should  I, 
in  this  presence,  the  particular  forms,  practices, 
tenets  of  any  of  the  various  divisions  of  Christianity; 
but  they  well  knew  in  such   an   undertaking,  in   the 


14  Oration. 

achievement  thence  resulting,  that  you  might  as  well 
hope  to  bind  fast  with  a  silken  thread  any  of  the 
great  ships  in  yonder  harbor,  that  you  could  as 
easily  quarry  the  granite  rocks  which  line  our  coast 
with  the  keen  edge  of  a  razor,  as  hope  to  rebuild, 
maintain,  and  perpetuate  a  nation  by  mere  human 
means  and  without  religion. 

Human  genius,  exceptionable  ability,  valor,  have 
done  many  wonderful  things  in  creating,  in  hold- 
ing people  together  under  authority,  in  determining 
laws,  in  welding  States  into  one  mighty  and  en- 
during fabric  of  empire;  but  one  thing  mere  genius 
has  never  done,  no,  nor  ever  conceived,  a  govern- 
ment such  as  these  United  States.  Other  and 
great  States,  ancient  and  modern,  have  risen  and 
nourished  and  filled  a  great  place.  But  they  were 
often  scourges  in  the  hands  of  God ;  they  fell,  and 
great  was  the  fall  thereof ;  "  their  root  was  rottenness 
and  their  flower  went  up  as  dust;  for  they  knew 
not,  or  cast  far  from  them,  the  law  of  the  God  of 
hosts,  and  blasphemed  the  word  of  the  Holy  One 
of  Israel."     (Isaiah  v.  24.) 

For  what,  I  ask,  is  it  that  makes  for  the  enno- 
bling and  preservation  of  man;  what  safeguards 
and  sanctifies  the  home;  what  casts  the  aegis  of 
protection   around   the  family ;    what   is  the  sanction 


Fourth   of   July,    1898.  15 

of  law,  and  the  motive  and  reward  of  obedience ; 
what  begets  character  and  directs  and  enlightens 
public  opinion;  what  is  the  solid  barrier  against 
moral  corruption  and  unholy  greed;  what  promotes 
peace  and  maintains  justice;  what  reduces  to  a 
minimum  crime,  lawlessness,  pauperism;  what  makes 
a  country  worth  living  for,  worth  dying  for; 
what  alone  makes  life  tolerable,  nay,  blessed? 
It  is  religion  —  religion,  the  only,  the  immu- 
table basis  of  civic  as  of  human  life,  which,  per- 
meating and  directing  individuals  and  States, 
transforms  them  and  renders  them  worthy  of  the 
divine  blessing.  And  the  recognition  of  this  great 
truth  is  happily  abundant  in  the  profession  and 
policy  of  this  government,  and  in  the  public  and 
private  lives  of  its  great  men-  In  the  very  doc- 
ument which  gives  rise  to  this  day's  celebration 
the  name  of  God  greets  us  in  its  opening  para- 
graph ;  it  is  invoked  in  its  closing  sentence.  In- 
deed, not  to  appeal  to  the  express  and  lengthy 
invocation  of  G-od  in  Washington's  inaugural  address, 
nor  to  the  hope  and  reverent  trust  of  his  farewell, 
I  will  venture  to  briefly  quote  a  paragraph  from 
the  writings  of  one  who,  from  the  very  calmness 
and  philosophic  character  of  his  mind,  was  thought 
to   have   taken   a  purely  human  and  utilitarian  view 


16  Oration. 

of  the  Revolution.  The  words  are  those  of  Benjamin 
Franklin,  spoken  in  Congress  on  the  framing  of  the 
Constitution.  "Sir,"  he  said,  "I  have  lived  many  years, 
and  the  longer  I  live,  the  more  convincing  proofs  I  see 
that  God  governs  the  affairs  of  men;  and  if  a  spar- 
row cannot  fall  without  his  notice,  is  it  probable 
that  an  empire  can  rise  without  his  aid?  We  are 
told  in  the  sacred  writings  that  except  the  Lord 
build  a  house  they  labor  in  vain  that  build  it. 
This  I  firmly  believe,  and  I  believe  that,  without 
his  concurring  aid,  we  shall  succeed  no  better  in  this 
political  building  of  ours  than  did  the  builders  of 
Babel."  (Parton's  "  Life  of  Benjamin  Franklin." 
Vol.  II.)  Thus  Franklin,  and  thus  with  him,  too, 
all  names  illustrious  in  history.  "I  know  not,"  says 
Cicero,  "whether  the  destruction  of  piety  towards 
the  gods  would  not  be  the  destruction  also  of  good 
faith,  of  human  society,  and  of  the  most  excellent  of 
virtues,  justice."  (De  Nat.  Deor.  i.  2.)  "I  hold," 
says  Cardinal  Gibbons,  "that  religion  is  the  only 
solid  basis  of  society.  If  the  social  edifice  rests  not 
on  this  eternal  and  immutable  foundation  it  will  soon 
crumble  to  pieces.  It  would  be  as  vain  to  attempt 
to  establish  society  without  religion  as  to  erect  a 
palace  in  the  air,  or  on  shifting  sands,  or  to  hope 
to   reap  a  crop   from   seed   scattered   on   the  ocean's 


Fourth   of   July,   1898.  17 

surface."  For  what,  fellow-citizens,  does  religion 
demand  of  you  and  of  me?  What  support  does  it 
impart  to  the  nation?  It  demands  of  you  that  you 
be  loyal  to  your  country,  zealous  in  her  defence, 
faithful  in  the  observance  of  her  laws,  scrupulous  in 
observing  your  oaths  and  vows,  honest  in  your  deal- 
ings and  truthful  in  your  promises ;  "  that  you 
render  to  all  men  their  dues;  tribute  to  whom 
tribute  is  due;  custom  to  whom  custom;  fear  to 
whom  fear;  honor  to  whom  honor."  (Romans  xiii.  7.) 
Apart  from  this,  religion  teaches  us  that  we  are  all 
children  of  the  same  father,  brothers  and  sisters  of 
the  same  Redeemer,  and,  consequently,  members 
of  the  same  family.  It  teaches  us  the  brotherhood  of 
humanity.  It  influences  the  master  and  servant,  the 
rich  and  the  poor;  the  rich  that  they  may  not  be 
high-minded;  the  poor  to  sustain  contentedly  their 
lot  after  the  example  of  Him  "who,  though  rich, 
became  poor  that  through  His  poverty  we  might  all 
become  rich."  ( 2  Cor.  viii.  9. )  In  a  word,  says 
the  above-named  prelate,  "religion  is  the  focus  of 
all  social  virtues,  the  sure  foundation  of  public 
morals,  and  the  one  instrument  by  which  wise  rulers 
and  legislators  may  rule  the  destinies  of  a  people, 
and  exalt  the  glory  of  a  nation.  It  is  stronger  than 
self-interest,    more    awe-inspiring   than    civil    threats, 


18  Oration. 

more  universal  than  honor,  more  active  than  love  of 
country,  the  surest  guarantee  that  rulers  can  have 
the  fidelity  of  their  subjects,  and  that  subjects  can 
have  the  justice  of  their  rulers.  It  is  the  curb  of 
the  mighty,  the  defence  of  the  weak,  the  consolation 
of  the  afflicted.  It  is  the  covenant  of  God  with  man. 
It  is,  in  the  language  of  Homer,  i  the  golden  chain 
which  suspends  the  earth  from  the  throne  of 
the  eternal.' '  As  then,  the  favor  and  protection 
of  the  Most  High,  merited  by  their  purpose,  was 
the  impulse  and  support  of  those  who  began  this 
government,  so,  too,  must  we  walk  in  the  light 
of  his  countenance,  if  we  hope  to  sustain  it  and 
carry  out  its  high  ideals.  A  country  discovered 
largely  through  the  impulses  and  promptings  of 
religious  zeal,  colonized  in  part  by  those  who  braved 
all  things  that  they  might  worship  God  according 
to  the  dictates  of  conscience ;  baptized  once  in  blood 
to  show  that  justice  must  rule  man's  government  of 
man;  baptized  a  second  time  in  order  that  all  men, 
whatever  the  color  of  their  faces,  should  be  free; 
we  are  at  this  moment  again  engaged,  not  so  much 
in  a  war,  as  in  a  crusade,  to  prove  that  inhumanity 
must  not  rule,  at  least  in  this  western  world.  We 
may  have  had  our  doubts  and  misgivings  as  to  whether 
the  resources  of  diplomacy  were    exhausted;  we  may 


Fourth   of   July,    1898.  19 

have  hoped  that  the  clouds  of  war  might  pass  away, 
and  that  the  blood  of  the  Nation's  sons  might  be 
spared;  but  when  our  chief  executive  declared  the 
position  intolerable,  the  conclusion  was  at  hand. 
"  Respublica  locuta  est,  causa  finita  est."  The  Nation 
has  spoken  and  there  is  no  more  doubt.  Extending 
on  this  day  of  glorious  memories  greetings  and  praise 
to  our  gallant  boys  in  blue,  who,  on  land  and  sea, 
uphold  our  flag  and  honor  so  bravely,  extending 
also  sympathy  to  the  wounded  and  to  the  friends  of 
those  who  nobly  died  beneath  a  southern  sun,  surely 
it  is  wise  to  recognize  that  new  conditions  con- 
front us,  and  that  even  in  the  seeming  paths  of 
peace  there  are  dangers.  In  a  country  so  large,  so 
teeming  with  the  different  races  of  earth  who  all 
here  find  shelter  beneath  freedom's  canopy,  'tis 
well,  surely,  that  those  who  seek  a  home  among  us 
should  be  taught  devotion  to  the  flag  and  what  that 
flag  represents.  Yet  am  I  not  of  those  who  see  dan- 
ger lurking  here,  for  so  profoundly  am  I  convinced 
of  this  nation's  grandeur,  so  well  do  I  appreciate 
the  opportunities  for  the  pursuit  of  life,  liberty  and 
happiness  which  it  holds  forth,  so  fully  do  I  realize 
its  glory,  that  the  conviction  comes  home  to  me 
that  all,  strangers  to  our  soil,  will  soon  learn  to 
love  this,  the  country  of   their   adoption.     For  when 


20  Oration. 

once,  indeed,  the  genius  of  this  country's  institutions 
will  have  dawned  upon  them,  when  once  they  will 
have  realized  that  this  is,  and  should  be,  the  land  of 
universal  brotherhood,  that  here,  like  God's  sun- 
shine, there  is  freedom  for  all,  then  will  they  cherish 
it,  and  in  every  danger,  in  every  crisis,  like  that 
which  now  confronts  us,  rally  and  fly  to  its  defence 
like  unto  the  gallant  sons  of  that  Niobe  among 
the  nations  whose  blood  flows  in  my  veins.  Soon, 
too,  will  they  learn  that  though  vast  and  boundless 
are  our  plains,  extensive  our  marts  of  trade  and 
commerce,  yet  is  there  not  room  enough  for  English- 
men, Irishmen,  Italians,  Frenchmen  or  Germans, 
but  that  they  should  be  Americans  all.  And  their 
motto,  high-uplifted,  shall  be — "Pro  Deo  et  Patria," 
—  For  God  and  country.  And  in  this  connection, 
too,  though  not  necessary  in  view  of  history  past, 
present  and  of  the  hour,  it  may  perchance  become 
me  to  say,  priest  of  that  church  whose  symbol  was 
first  planted  on  these  shores,  that  whilst  we  cheerfully 
give  obedience  to,  and  take  our  religion  from  him 
who  sits  enthroned  by  the  Tiber's  banks,  yet  in  all 
that  pertains  to  the  glory,  the  expansion,  the  fame,  the 
defence,  the  honor  of  this  fair  republic,  we  are  one  with 
our  fellow-citizens  of  every  creed  and  denomination. 
Reluctantly,    indeed,  would    I,  whose    pathways    are 


Fourth   of   July,    1898.  21 

those  of  peace,  and  who,  whilst  living  amid  worldly 
strife,  yet  am  supposed  to  be  remote  therefrom, 
assume  the  office  of  the  statesman,  and  point  out 
dangers  that  may  impede  the  country's  glory  and  ad- 
vancement. Yet  it  does  not  require  any  great  pene- 
tration or  worldly  wisdom  to  see  that  a  spirit  of 
wild  and  feverish  speculation  is  abroad  upon  the 
land;  that  the  desire  for  riches  and  contempt  for 
honest  toil  grow  apace;  that  selfish  and  greedy 
combinations  seeking  to  control  industrial  activities 
excite  a  spirit  of  unrest  among  the  people;  that 
communism,  conflicts  between  labor  and  capital, 
discriminating  legislation,  idleness  and  intemperance 
retard  national  prosperity ;  that  mischievous  and 
unpatriotic  utterances  of  a  few  native  and  foreign 
agitators  sow  dissension  among  brethren.  These 
dangers  need  the  exercise  of  a  broad  and  vigilant 
patriotism.  They  need  for  their  correction  the  appli- 
cation of  the  power  of  law  and  the  condemnation 
of   wise  public  opinion. 

But  now  to  conclude:  In  fullest  confidence  in  that 
guiding  providence  so  manifest  in  the  past,  confi- 
dent in  the  might  of  religion  to  teach,  to  enforce 
and  to  uphold  justice,  peace  and  good-will;  confident 
in  the  good  sense,  in  the  loyalty  of  our  citizens  to 
maintain  and  transmit  to  others  what  they  enjoy,  we 


22  Oration. 

may  look  forward  on  this  day  with  hopeful  hearts  to 
the  continued  glory  and  prosperity  of  our  country. 
And  may  each  circling  year  behold  it  high  advanced ! 
May  new  heroes  arise  with  the  coming  years  for 
its  defence  —  heroes,  who  in  life  and  act  will  imitate 
the  virtues  and  heroic  deeds  of  the  fathers,  and  con- 
tinue to  show  forth  what  a  common  devotion  and  a 
love  stronger  than  death  can  do,  has  done,  and  will 
do  again,  if  need  be,  to  perpetuate  liberty  and  union, 
now  and  forever,  one  and  inseparable. 


A    LIST 


BOSTON     MUNICIPAL    ORATORS. 


By  C.  W.  ERNST. 


BOSTON    ORATORS 

Appointed  bt  the  Municipal  Authorities. 


For  the  Anniversary  of  the  Boston  Massacre,  March  5,  1770. 

Note.  —  The  Fifth-of -March  orations  were  published  in  handsome  quarto  editions, 
now  very  scarce ;  also  collected  in  book  form  in  17S5,  and  again  in  1807.  The  oration 
of  1776  was  delivered  in  Watertown. 

1771.  —  Lovell,  James. 

1772.  — "Warren,  Joseph. 

1773.  —  Church,  Benjamin. 

1774.  — Hancock,  JoHN.a 

1775.  — Warren,  Joseph. 
1776. — Thacher,  Peter. 

1777.  —  Hichborn,  Benjamin. 

1778.  — Austin,  Jonathan  Williams. 

1779.  —  Tudor,  William. 
1780. — Mason,  Jonathan,  Jun. 

1781.  —  Dawes,  Thomas,  Jun. 

1782.  — Minot,  George  Richards. 

1783.  —Welsh,  Thomas. 


For  the  Anniversary  of  National  Independence,  July  4-,  1776. 

Note.  —  A  collected  edition,  or  a  full  collection,  of  these  orations  has  not  been 
made.  For  the  names  of  the  orators,  as  officially  printed  on  the  title  pages  of  the 
orations,  see  the  Municipal  Register  of  1890. 

1783.  —  Warren,  John.1 
1784. — Hichborn,  Benjamin. 
1785.  —  G-ardner,  John. 

a  Reprinted  in  Newport,  R.  I.,  1774,  Svo,  19  pp. 

1  Reprinted  in  Warren's  Life.  The  orations  of  1783  to  1786  were  published  in 
large  quarto ;  the  oration  of  1787  appeared  in  octavo ;  the  oration  of  1788  was  printed 
in  small  quarto;  all  succeeding  orations  appeared  in  octavo,  with  the  exceptions 
stated  under  1863  and  1876. 


26  Appendix. 

1786.  — Austin,  Jonathan  Loring. 

1787.  — Dawes,  Thomas,  Jun. 
1788. — Otis,  Harrison  Gray. 

1789.  —  Stillman,  Samuel. 

1790.  —  Gray,  Edward. 

1791.  —  Crafts,  Thomas,  Jun. 
1792. — Blake,  Joseph,  Jun.2 
1793. — Adams,  John  Quincy.2 
1794.  — Phillips,  John. 
1795. — Blake,  George. 

1796.  —  Lathrop,  John,  Jun. 

1797.  —  Callender,  John. 

1798.  —  Quincy,  Josiah.2'3 

1799.  — Lowell,  John,  Jun.2 
1800. — Hall,  Joseph. 

1801.  —  Paine,  Charles. 

1802.  — Emerson,  William. 

1803.  —  Sullivan,  William. 
1804. — Danforth,  Thomas.2 

1805.  —  Dutton,  Warren. 

1806.  —  Channing,  Francis  Dana.4 

1807.  — Thacher,  Peter.2'  5 

1808.  — Ritchie,  Andrew,  Jun.2 
1809. — Tudor,  William,  Jun.2 
1810. — Townsend,  Alexander. 

1811.  —  Savage,  James.2 

1812.  —  Pollard,  Benjamin.4 

1813.  — Livermore,  Edward  St.  Loe. 

2  Passed  to  a  second  edition. 

3  Delivered  another  oration  in  1826.  Quincy's  oration  of  1798  was  reprinted,  also, 
in  Philadelphia. 

*  Not  printed. 

5  On  February  36,  1811,  Peter  Thacher's  name  was  changed  to  Peter  Oxenhridge 
Thacher.  (List  of  Persons  whose  Names  have  been  Changed  in  Massachusetts,  1780- 
1892,  p.  21.) 


Appendix.  27 

1814.  —  Whit  well  ,  Benjamin  . 

1815.  —  Shaw,  Lemuel. 

1816.  —  Sullivan,  George.'2 

1817.  —  Channing,  Edward  Tyrrel. 

1818.  —  Gray,  Francis  Calley. 
1819. — Dexter,  Franklin. 
1820.  —  Lyman,  Theodore,  Jun. 
1821. — Loring,  Charles  Greely.2 

1822.  —  Gray,  John  Chipman. 

1823.  —  Curtis,  Charles    Pelham.2 

1824.  —  Bassett,  Francis. 

1825.  —  Sprague,    Charles.6 

1826.  —  Quincy,  Josiah . 7 

1827. — Mason,  William  Powell. 

1828.  —  Sumner,  Bradford. 

1829.  — Austin,  James  Trecothick. 

1830.  —  Everett,  Alexander  Hill. 

1831.  —  Palfrey,  John  Gorham. 

1832.  — Quincy,  Josiah,  Jun. 

1833.  — Prescott,  Edward  Goldsborough. 
1834. — Fay,  Richard  Sullivan. 

1835. — Hillard,  George  Stillman. 

1836.  —  Kinsman,  Henry  Willis. 

1837.  —  Chapman,  Jonathan. 

1838. — Winslow,  Hubbard.  "The  Means  of  the  Per- 
petuity and  Prosperity  of  our  Republic." 

1839. — Austin,  Ivers  James. 

1840.  —  Power,  Thomas. 

1841. — Curtis,  George  Ticknor.8  "  The  True  Uses  of 
American  Revolutionary  History."  8 

1842.— Mann,   Horace.9 

6  Six  editions  up  to  1831.    Reprinted^also  in  his  Life  and  Letters. 

7  Reprinted  in  his  Municipal  History  of  Boston.    See  1798. 

8  Delivered  another  oration  in  1862. 

9  There  are  five  editions;  only  one  by  the  City. 


28  Appendix. 

1843. — Adams,  Charles  Francis. 

1844.  —  Chandler,  Peleg  Whitman.  "The  Morals  of 
Freedom." 

1845. — Sumner,  Charles.10  "The  True  G-randeur  of 
Nations." 

1846. — Webster,   Fletcher. 

1847. — Cary,  Thomas  Greaves. 

1848.  — Giles,  Joel.     "Practical  Liberty." 

1849. — Greenough,  William  Whitwell.  "The  Con- 
quering Republic." 

1850.  —  Whipple,  Edwin  Percy.11  "  Washington  and 
the  Principles  of  the  Revolution." 

1851. — Russell,  Charles  Theodore. 

1852. — King,  Thomas  Starr.12  "The  Organization  of 
Liberty  on  the  Western  Continent."  12 

1853.  —  Bigelow,  Timothy.13 

1854.  —  Stone,  Andrew  Leete.2 

1855.  —  Miner,  Alonzo  Ames. 

1856. — Parker,    Edward    Griffin.     "The  Lesson   of 

'76  to  the  Men  of  '56." 
1857. — Alger,  William  Rounseville.14     "  The  Genius 

and  Posture  of  America." 
1858. — Holmes,  John  Somers.2 

1859.  —  Sumner,  George.15 

1860.  —  Everett  ,  Edward  . 
1861. — Parsons,  Theophilus. 

1862.  —  Curtis,  George  Ticknor.8 

1863.  —  Holmes,  Oliver  Wendell.16 
1864. — Russell,  Thomas. 

10  Passed  through  three  editions  in  Boston  and  one  in  London,  and  was  answered 
in  a  pamphlet,  Remarks  upon  an  Oration  delivered  by  Charles  Sumner  ....  July 
4th,  1845.  By  a  Citizen  of  Boston.  See  Memoir  and  Letters  of  Charles  Sumner,  by 
Edward  L.  Pierce,  vol.  ii.  337-384. 

11  There  is  a  second  edition.    (Boston:  Ticknor,  Reed  &  Fields.    1850.    49  pp.  12°.) 

12  First  published  by  the  City  in  1892. 

18  This  and  a  number  of  the  succeeding  orations,  up  to  1S61,  contain  the  speeches, 
toasts,  etc.,  of  the  City  dinner  usually  given  in  Faneuil  Hall  on  the  Fourth  of  July. 


Appendix.  29 

1865. — Manning,     Jacob     Merrill.        "Peace    under 
Liberty." 

1866.  —  Lothrop,  Samuel  Kirkland. 

1867.  —  Hepworth,  George  Hughes. 

1868.— Eliot  Samuel.     "  The  Functions  of  a  City." 
1869. — Morton,  Ellis  Wesley. 
1870. — Everett,  "William. 

1871.  —  Sargent,  Horace  Binney. 

1872.  — Adams,  Charles  Francis,  Jun. 

1873. — Ware,  John  Fothergill  Waterhouse. 
1874. — Frothingham,  Richard. 

1875.  —  Clarke,  James  Freeman. 

1876.  —  Winthrop,  Robert  Charles.17 

1877.  —  Warren,  William  Wirt. 

1878.  —  Healy,  Joseph. 
1879. — Lodge,  Henry  Cabot. 

1880.  —  Smith,  Robert  Dickson.18 

1881.  —  Warren,  George  Washington.     "Our  Repub- 

lic—  Liberty  and  Equality  Founded  on  Law." 
1882. — Long,  John  Davis. 

1883.  —  Carpenter,     Henry     Bernard.  "American 

Character  and  Influence." 

1884.  —  Shepard,  Harvey  Newton. 

1885.  —  Gargan,  Thomas  John. 

"Probably  four  editions  were  printed  in  1857.  (Boston:  Office  Boston  Daily  Bee. 
60  pp.)  Not  until  November  22, 1864,  was  Mr.  Alger  asked  by  tbe  City  to  furnish  a 
copy  for  publication.  He  granted  the  request,  and  the  first  official  edition  (J.  E.  Far- 
well  &  Co.,  1864,53  pp.)  was  then  issued.  It  lacks  the  interesting  preface  and  appendix 
of  the  early  editions. 

"There  is  another  edition.  (Boston:  Ticknor  &  Fields,  1859,  69  pp.)  A  third 
(Boston:  Rockwell  &  Churchill,  1882.  46  pp.)  omits  the  dinner  at  Faneuil  Hall,  the 
correspondence  and  events  of  the  celebration. 

16  There  is  a  preliminary  edition  of  twelve  copies.  (J.  E.  Farwell  &  Co.,  1863.  (7), 
71  pp.)  It  is  "  the  first  draft  of  the  author's  address,  turned  into  larger,  legible  type, 
for  the  sole  purpose  of  rendering  easier  its  public  delivery."  It  was  done  by  "  the 
liberality  of  the  City  Authorities,"  and  is,  typographically,  the  handsomest  of  these 
orations.  This  resulted  in  the  large-paper  75-page  edition,  printed  from  the  same 
type  as  the  71-page  edition,  but  modified  by  the  author.  It  is  printed  "  by  order  of  the 
Common  Council."     The  regular  edition  is  in  60  pp.,  octavo  size. 


30  Appendix. 

1886. — Williams,  George  Frederick. 
1887.  —  Fitzgerald,  John  Edward. 
1888. — Dillaway,  "William  Edward  Lovell. 
1889.  —  Swift,  John  Lindsay.19     "The  American   Citi- 
zen." 
1890. — Pillsbury,  Albert  Enoch.     "  Public  Spirit.  " 

1891.  — Quincy,  Josiah.20     "The  Coming  Peace." 

1892.  —  Murphy,  John  Robert. 

1893. — Putnam,  Henry  Ware.     "The  Mission  of   Our 

People." 
1894.  —  O'Neil,  Joseph  Henry. 
1895. — Berle,  Adolph  Augustus.     "The  Constitution 

and  the  Citizen." 
1896. — Fitzgerald,  John  Francis. 
1897. — Hale,  Edward  Everett. 
1898.— O'Callaghan,  Rev.  D. 

17  There  is  a  large  paper  edition  of  fifty  copies  printed  from  this  type,  and  also  an 
edition  from  the  press  of  John  Wilson  &  Son,  1876.    55  pp.  8°. 

13  On  Samuel  Adams,  a  statue  of  whom,  by  Miss  Anne  Whitney,  had  just  been 
completed  for  the  City.    A  photograph  of  the  statue  is  added. 

19  Contains  a  bibliography  of  Boston  Fourth  of  July  orations,  from  1783  to  1889, 
inclusive,  compiled  by  Lindsay  Swift,  of  the  Boston  Public  Library. 

20  Reprinted  by  the  American  Peace  Society. 


Date  Due 

f) 

BOSTON  COLLEGE 


3  9031   01119493  3 


BOSTON  COLLEGE  LIBRARY 

UNIVERSITY  HEIGHTS 
CHESTNUT  HILL,  MASS. 


Books  may  be  kept  for  two  weeks  and   may  be 
renewed  for  the  same  period,  unless  reserved. 

Two  cents  a  day  is  charged  for  each   book  kept 
overtime. 

If  you    cannot    find    what   you   want,  ask   the 
Librarian  who  will  be  glad  to  help  you. 

The  borrower   is  responsible  for  books  drawn 
on  his  card  and  for  all  fines  accruing  on  the  same. 


I 


' 


m 


